8:00 pm Cincinnati at Atlanta (-4 1/2, 37 1/2) - Kind of an odd line here, considering that Atlanta lost at home to Baltimore by an unhealthy, 31-17 margin and the Bengals throttled the Jets, 17-6.

Atlanta will give more time to starter Matt Ryan after a solid effort (9-13, 155, TD, INT), but the Falcon secondary needs something after allowing Curtis Painter to throw for three second half TDs.

The Bengals looked like the real deal, holding the Jets to 11 first downs and 173 yards of offense.

Prediction: Bengals 24 Falcons 14

8:00 pm Cleveland at Green Bay (-3, 40) - The Packers looked horrible against San Diego in a 21-13 loss, but back at home with another week of practice under their collective belts should produce more offense.

Cleveland, a surprise, 19-17, winner over Detroit last week, will have their hands full with a Packer offense looking to build some momentum and get everyone on the same pages.

The Browns were down, 14-3, at the half, but rallied to win. It will be interesting to see if they have the same kind of emotion against Green Bay. Overall, the Packers should rebound with a solid performance, befitting a team that seeks Super Bowl rings.

Prediction: Packers 28 Browns 17

Friday, August 17

7:30 pm Tennessee at Tampa Bay (-3, 37 1/2) - Tampa Bay won their first preseason game, 20-7, over a listless Miami squad, while the Titans were losers at Seattle, 27-17.

Both teams are out to prove they can compete and not just rebuild in 2012, but the Titans are probably a little further down that path and should come up with a win here in a close call.

Prediction: Titans 17 Buccaneers 14

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8:00 pm Detroit at Baltimore (-2 1/2, 39) - The Ravens ripped Atlanta on the road last week and looked like a sure contender for the AFC North. Cleveland stole on from the Lions, 19-17, but Detroit will put on a better effort in preseason week
two and give Matthew Stafford more live reps.

Baltimore, of course, still possesses one of the better defenses in the league, but the Lions know it's time to get things in order, because after this week, starters will have only one more game, as generally, most of the league rests skill players in week four.

Look for the Lions to take an early lead and hold on late.

Prediction: Lions 27 Ravens 21

8:00 pm Buffalo at Minnesota (-2 1/2, 37) - To the dismay of the Buffalo faithful, the Bills looked completely disorganized on offense against Washington in last week's 7-6 loss and will try to get things right when they travel to play the Vikings.

Minnesota may not be as horrible as last year's team, even though they lost at San Francisco, 17-6. The defense did pretty well, but playing the Bills, at home, instead of the 49ers, on the road, will have a positive impact on the whole team.

Buffalo will be 0-2 and raising doubts by even the most arduous fans.

Prediction: Vikings 20 Bills 10

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8:00 Miami at Carolina (-4, 37) - Cam Newton probably doesn't need as many preseason reps as he's going to get, but the second year QB with unlimited upside will take them.

Newton was only 2-for-6 for 17 yards with a sack in Carolina's 26-13 loss to Houston, though he did reel off a nifty 15-yard run.

The Panthers should open up the offense a little bit and be successful against a Miami team that looks worse than last year's underperforming squad.

Prediction: Panthers 27 Dolphins 13

8:00 pm Jacksonville at New Orleans (-6 1/2, 39) - After the Giants ran the score up to 24-7 in the first half last week, Jacksonville's reserves roared back for a 32-31 score. That kind of outcome is unlikely to occur two weeks in a row, but the line on this game may be 7 to 7 1/2 by game time, making one pose the question of just how good are the Saints and are they out to prove smething to the NFL Commissioner's office.

New England showed that New Orleans can be slowed, beating them 7-6 in an odd game, and the Jacksonville bench warmers may actually be better than some of the starters, so the points look like the play of the week despite being down in the Bayou.

The Jags may not win, but their reserves will keep this one close.

Prediction: Saints 24 Jaguars 21

10:00 pm Oakland at Arizona (-5, 37 1/2) - The Raiders seemed to be sleep-walking in their 3-0 loss on Monday night to the Cowboys. There were missed assignments on offense galore and Oakland blew chances with good field position on penalties and mental errors.

The Cardinals are 0-2 after last week's 27-17 beat-down in Kansas City, and may be hungry for a win to get thing going in a positive direction. Considering how poorly Oakland's backups looked in their first live game action, this could turn into a rout if Brian Kolb gets off the mark early.

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